Community Affairs

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AMD in the Community

Across the globe, AMD, the AMD Foundation and our employees have been supporting our local communities for over 35 years. This takes the form of monetary support and, more importantly, the participation of AMD employees – from interns all the way up to the C-suite.

We encourage our employees to take time away from their busy days, team up with their colleagues and connect with their communities. This value has been enthusiastically embraced by many employees around the world, with more AMDers taking part in community service projects year-over-year.

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

Volunteer Hours

7,734

9,043

9,208

8,883

7,280

10,257

Number of Volunteers

1,202

1,185

1,331

1,802

2,084

2,451

Number of AMD Sponsored Events

196

146

119

120

127

138

All volunteer data is from AMD Community Affairs Global Summary 2012-2017.

Day of Service

Each spring AMD hosts our annual AMD Cares Day of Service with the goal of getting our employees out into their local communities for a company-wide celebration of community service. Since the program launched in 2015, over 6,000 global employees have volunteered more than 15,000 hours.

One of the great things about AMD Cares Day of Service is the diversity of causes we support. Our sites work with many organizations to choose events that work best for their local community such as cleaning up local parks, preparing meals for the homeless, teaching students to build computers and spending time with the elderly.

Volunteer Stories

Austin – Students Increase STEM Skills by Building Computers

A true passion of our employees is to foster learning in the next generation using our unique combination of technical know-how and care for the communities in which we live and work. Through a collaboration with Communities in Schools of Central Texas, over forty technology-minded high school students visited the AMD Austin campus to immerse themselves in what it means to be AMDers. During a career talk session, students had a chance to ask employees questions like “what do you do in your job,” “what made you choose that career,” and “what did you have to do to get there?” Conversations like these can help students model their own potential educational and career paths. With their appetites for knowledge whetted, the students then got to have a hands-on experience building computers featuring AMD Ryzen™ processor and Radeon™ graphics technology. Working side-by-side with our executive team members, including CEO Lisa Su, the students had the opportunity to see and even touch the technology that could be part of their future careers. Beyond the career talks and computer build, there was also something intangible shared that day. “This is truly the type of experience that can change the trajectory of a young person’s life. You treated our students with tremendous care and respect, and we are so grateful for your generosity,” said Suki Steinhauser, Chief Executive Officer, Communities in Schools.

Shanghai – More than 400 AMDers Join the Run for Shanghai Baby Home

The AMD Shanghai team continually shares their time and talents with the community. Combining their community spirit for helping children with the team’s love of physical activity, the Run for Shanghai Baby Home was born! The hundreds of AMD employees (and their families) who participated made a significant impact to raise awareness and support for an organization that helps babies receive needed medical treatment. From the group warm up, to the starting line, and eventually the finish line, the goal of benefiting children in the community was core to the day’s activities. “Thanks AMD for helping the babies who have illnesses and need to have operations,” said Mrs. Zhang from Shanghai Baby Home. “I saw all participants wearing green t-shirts today; green means hope. I am very glad AMD is doing this.”

Hyderabad - Brightening the Lives of Hospice Patients

While everything we do for the community through volunteering is important, when the chance to help in the face of devastating circumstances presents itself, that’s a uniquely powerful experience. At the Sparsh Hospice palliative care center, not only did AMD employees bring much needed donations for the medical staff, but they also spent time with the patients themselves, engaging in conversation, sharing news, and singing songs, all with the goal of bringing some brightness into the some of the most challenging days a person can face. Volunteers also walked through the admission and care initiatives with the staff, gaining a deeper understanding of what it takes to support those who are terminally ill. While this was a challenging day for our employees, one noted “it gives a great sense of satisfaction to know that there is someone who is taking care of them leaving them with a smile.”

Markham – Riding a Big Bike for Heart & Stroke Awareness

They say you never forget how to ride a bike, but what about when the bike has 29 seats? AMD Markham took on this challenge during the Big Bike Ride in support of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. Even with rain coming down and thick parkas swaddling them, the team pedaled on, using their strength and voices to bring attention to the organization’s mission. The opportunity to pair a fun, physical activity and fund raising with an important lifesaving cause is a great example of how AMD employees thread joy into the communities in which they live and work.

Santa Clara – Technovation: Girl’s from Around the World Solving Tough Problems

Technology is an increasingly important focus area for students, but AMD strives to make that connection between students and the possibilities of technology deeply meaningful in the way we partner with the community. Through Technovation, the world’s largest global technology entrepreneurship program for girls ages 10-18, students are given the opportunity to learn the skillsets they need to solve real-world problems through technology. It was an honor for AMD Santa Clara to host a special event for this organization as part of our ongoing commitment to the community and cultivating a diverse and inclusive culture. As the culmination of several months’ work by 2,000 teams made up of 19,000 girls from 113 countries, this event featured the final 12 teams who had developed mobile applications and business plans to address problems specific to their communities. AMD CEO Lisa Su shared some of her personal career journey in technology with this group of talented young women, encouraging them to “run toward the hardest problems” and find solutions.

Penang - A Tradition of Feeding the Homeless Continues

In the words of Anne Frank, “no one has ever become poor by giving.” Guided by this concept, the AMD Penang team truly gave back at the Lighthouse Drop-In Centre, where those in need come to not only have a meal from the soup kitchen, but also to receive valuable social services. Through a day of hard work, the AMD team prepared traditional foods for afternoon tea and dinner service, serving these nourishing meals with an additional something special. “The main takeaway is that we need to continue to exhibit philanthropic behavior and treat the homeless community with dignity and respect,” said an AMD volunteer. “We hope our socially responsible actions not only set a good role model within ourselves, but in fact we would like to instill this positive energy in every community we serve so that everyone can be inspired as to the importance of community service.”

Singapore - Protecting the Environment One Tree at a Time

Protecting our environment is a key cause AMD employees rally around worldwide. In Singapore, volunteers turned out in a big way to plant trees at Yishun Park, dividing their time between learning about the various kinds of foliage and how they benefit the environment and planting over 75 trees at the site. Even through the rain, the team banded together to accomplish their goals. As a volunteer noted, “soon we realized that the tree planting initiative was not just an act of giving back, but also turned out to be a fun-filled learning and team building activity. That our employees get the chance to connect one another as they benefit the community around them is a wonderful side effect of volunteerism.”

Taiwan, China – Bringing Technology to Rural Students

Supporting education through technology is a continuous theme through the work AMDers do in the community. The Taiwan, China team took this concept and ran with it, focusing on an area in the rural countryside that often experiences environmental threats from earthquakes and typhoons throughout the year. Since education can be interrupted by such disasters, the team saw the need in this resource restricted area, working with local AMD partners to not just provide much-needed equipment updates and technology demos, but to share a hands-on PC building experience with local students. For many students, this was their first experience seeing such technology and meeting the employees who might inspire their own futures. “It is our obligation to help students and younger generations who are our future to build up our communities. When we learned that Ming-Li elementary school students lack education equipment and access to technologies, we felt this is what we should do to help them. I’m more than happy when I feel AMD's technology ignites the students’ dreams. I am also touched by our employees contributing their time and knowledge in helping with the students. ‘Technology changes your life’ is not only a slogan, it's our action!” said Lanzhi Wang, Sr. Sales Director, Taiwan Site Leader